theories of motivation

• Instinct Theory

  -          there is an innate biological force causing an organism to act in a certain way

  -          these ‘forces’ are perceived to be automatic, involuntary and unlearned behavior or reflexive behavior that are elicited when certain stimuli are present

  -          example of instinct:

            -    pregnant mother cat builds a nest of cloth and cardboards

            -    cat shows aggression by arching its back and hissing in the presence of a threat
• Homeostasis Theories


  -          the assumptions of homeostatic theory are that organisms attempt to maintain homeostasis, the balance of physiological state or equilibrium, by constantly adjusting themselves to the demands of the environment
• Homeostasis Theories


  -          two types of drives:

            -    primary drives, one resulting from biological needs, known as the innate drive

            -    secondary drives, drives that result from operant conditioning and the association with primary reinforcements
• Arousal Theory


  -          they seek to maintain an optimal level of arousal and this optimal level varies from organism to organism

  -          extroverts, lower level of cortical arousal so they are more likely to seek arousal

            -    extroverts are more likely to smoke, drink alcohol, have frequent sex, like loud music, eat spicy foods, and engage in activities that are novel and risky

  -          introverts, higher level of cortical arousal so they don’t need as much external stimulation

            -    introverts are less likely to do things that extroverts do
• Incentive Theory


  -          people and animals are likely to be activated because they have the tendency to be pulled toward a specific goal

  -          theorists believe in this idea rather than assumption that people or animals are pushed to do things

  -          people would then attempt to attain goals that are pleasurable, and they try to avoid goals that are painful
• Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs


  -          most popular theories in motivation is Abraham Malow’s Sequential Theory of Development

  -          Maslow made a hypothesis that our needs are prioritized from physiological, to biological, to social, and up to spiritual
• Freudian Concept of Motivation

  -          sexual or libidinal and aggressive wishes are the primary motivating forces in human life

  -          erotic feelings have been recognized as a primary human motivation and Freud showed infantile pleasures and desires are precursors of adult sexuality
• Other Concepts of Motivation


  -          an american psychologists Magda B. Arnold stated that there are three components of motivation:

  -    direction, what a person is trying to do

  -    effort, how hard a person is trying

  -    persistence, how long a person keeps on trying
• Other Concepts of Motivation


  -          she distinguishes two types of factors that influence motivation:

  -    intrinsic, these are self generated factors such as responsibility, freedom to act, scope to use and develop skills and abilities, perform interesting and challenging works, and opportunities for self enhancement

  -    extrinsic, these are motivations coming from the people around the individual; may be in a form of rewards, promotion, or even punishment

  extrinsic motivation has an immediate and powerful effect, but it won’t
• Needs Theory


  -          one of the most influential theories based on the context of motives

  -          this is based on the belief that all behavior are motivated by unsatisfied needs

  -          so when an individual has unsatisfied need, he tends to create tension and would enter a state of disequilibrium

  -    in order to achieve homeostasis or balance, a goal should be identified of which the need will be satisfied and a behavior towards the goal is selected and presented
• Alderfer’s ERG Theory


  -          the expansion of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

  -          he categorized the need for existence (E), relatedness (R), and growth (G)

  -    Alderfer categorized physiological and safety as part of the lower order of needs, the category of existence

  -    under the category of relatedness, Alderfer viewed interpersonal love and esteem need as essential for relatedness

  -    the growth category contained the self actualization and self esteem needs
• McClelland’s Needs


  -          the theory of motivation by David McCleland is based on Henry Murray’s theory of personality

  -    which sets out a comprehensive model of human needs and motivational processes

  -          according to McClelland, the three most important needs are:

  -    achievement, need for competitive success measured against a personal standard of excellence

  -    affiliation, need for warm, friendly relationships with others

  -    power, need to control and influence others
• Herzberg’s Two Factor Model


  -          Frederick Irving Herzberg is famous for introducing job enrichment and the motivator-hygiene theory

  -    Herzberg’s theory states that function of motivators and hygiene factors

  -          motivators, factors that really motivate people

  -          hygiene, factors are dissatisfiers; with their absence, people would not be motivated but still, with their presence, it is not a guarantee that there will be an improved motivation
• Expectancy Theory


  -          Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory of motivation explained why individuals choose to follow certain courses of action in organizations, particularly in decision-making and leadership

  -          expectancy theory predicts that employees in an organization will be motivated when they believe that:

  -    putting in more effort will yield better performance

  -    better performance will lead to rewards or attainment of reinforcements

  -    the reward received are valued by the individuals
• Adam’s Equity Theory


  -          John Stacy Adams’ theory pertains to the perception of people about how they are being treated as compared to others

  -          this involves feelings and perceptions as a comparative process

  -          he also mentioned that people will  work better if they are treated equitably

  -          based on the theory, there are two forms of equity:

  -    distributive, fairness people feel they are rewarded in accordance with their contribution and in comparison with others

  procedural, perception of employees about fairness
• Other Theories of Motivation


  -          behavior theory by Burrhus Skinner, behavior is learned from conditioning through operations and learning takes place mainly through reinforcement
• Other Theories of Motivation

  -          Albert Bandura’s social learning theory, gives significance of reinforcement as a determinant of future behavior, importance of internal psychological factors
• Other Theories of Motivation

  -          attribution theory, explanation of performance after we have invested considerable effort and motivation in a task 

  -    there are four types of explanations: ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck

  -    motivation depends on the factors used to explain success of failure